With the legislative session starting soon, the head of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry is concerned about a proposal to eliminate refunds businesses receive for paying an inventory tax to local governments. LABI president Stephen Waguespack says you’ll see companies leaving the state if it happens…

cut 10 (08) “bad mistake”

The Jindal administration has proposed scaling back inventory tax refunds to deal with the budget crisis.

Metairie Representative Joe Lopinto files a bill for the upcoming legislative session that would essentially make playing fantasy football online for money legal. Right now in Louisiana, “play-for-cash” computer fantasy football would violate state gambling laws. Lopinto says there are numerous states which create gambling exceptions for fantasy…

cut 13 (08) “game of skill”

Lopinto says the bill specifies that no winning outcome would be based on scores, point spreads or on any single performance of a certain athlete.

House Transportation Committee Chairwoman Karen St. Germain of Pierre Part files a bill that would increase Louisiana’s gasoline tax by 4 cents a gallon. The funds, about $120 million per year, would be dedicated to the state’s roads and bridges on a local level. President of Louisiana Good Roads and Transportation Association Ken Perret says the funding is badly needed…

cut 7 (10) “to increase funding”

The measure was also submitted by Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Robert Adley of Benton. Dollars raised by the increased tax would go to the Parish Transportation Fund which finances local projects.